An aide to Aloysius Ikegwuonu, alias ‘Bishop’, one of the alleged drug barons fingered in the Sunday shooting at St Peters’ Catholic Church, Ozubulu, Anambra State, Mr. Jovita Offomata has dispelled the stories making the rounds that his principal was a drug baron. He refuted claims that his principal is into drug business and the Black Sunday event being a spill over effect of an illicit business.

The church attack claimed no fewer than 12 lives and 40 injured persons. But Offomata said the stories portraying ‘bishop’ as a drug peddler were evil and malicious.

Offomata who said he had been the chairman of a foundation set up by Ikegwuonu in Ozubulu for years, said he was a school mate to Bishop.

He said his boss was an innocuous and pious man which had made him to build three churches for his Ozubulu community. He described the police preliminary investigation as corroborated by the state governor, Willie Obiano, that the attack was a gang war imported into the state from abroad as false and unfounded.

He said his principal was an estate developer as well as an international business man. Addressing newsmen at the Secretariat of the Nigeria Union of Journalists on Monday night, Offomata described the incident at St Philips Church as a terror attack that had nothing to do with the disagreement over a business transaction as alleged.

He said, “My boss resides in South Africa. He is into estate development and importation of beverages and spare parts from China. He had developed many estates in South Africa and Nigeria which he sold to many people.

“He has built three churches in the community and through the foundation has assisted so many people; including scholarships to indigent students and empowered others in Ozubulu and beyond.”

Credit: nairaland.com

Categories: Igbo news